Recap – Summer 2023
We hope you all had a great summer full of making new memories! Ours seemed to fly by! One minute we were picking up Otis in early May, the next we knew it was Labor Day and year 3 of our full time Airstream adventure was upon us!
The amazing sunsets!
This is the view of the sunset from our deck we built from pallets two summers ago.
Naked Acres, WY
We started our summer by returning to one of our favorite places with our family in the Black Hills of Wyoming. Coming back here each summer allows us to de- stress a bit. A few months without planning, scheduling, and handling all the logistics, is just what we need!
Here in the Black Hills, Andrea is in heaven as she spends most of the days with her feet and hands planted firmly in the dirt. She loves practicing some of the permaculture principles she studied and experienced in Costa Rica, in the rocky soil of northeast Wyoming. Andrea is always looking for ways to grow food while working with the earth, using its naturally abundant materials and cycles to aid in the process. It is rare to see her without a smile on her face eager to show you the newest mushroom she found! Not far away from her you will usually find Mr. Otis running about chasing squirrels, chipmunks, or taking a well-deserved nap.
Part of the property we spend the summers on is available for tent, self-contained campers, or cabin rentals through the Hip Camp app. If you are looking for a quiet place to stay conveniently located within an hours drive of many popular tourists spots click the link below and use discount code: 2N3DNULE for a 15% discount.
https://www.hipcamp.com/en-US/land/wyoming-naked-acres-wy-kk9h9opw?shareid=31uy69ngks
Summer Job
In mid-summer we decided to do something different both for the experience and to earn a bit of money to replenish our travel funds. We decided to work the 83rd edition of the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. For two weeks, we stayed and worked at a large RV park just outside of town. Since neither of us are really motorcycle types, it was a fun learning experience to see all the different personalities that make up that world. For the first few days hearing the roar of the motorcycles was pretty awe inspiring, but about halfway through it we would have loved ear plugs 😊 While the work was fine and the accommodations were nice for long showers and people watching, one of our favorite parts of the experience was sharing it with Taiya, our youngest daughter. She started her van adventures at the beginning of the summer and coordinated plans to meet and work with us at Sturgis!
Andrea and Taiya on Day 1 at Sturgis, SD
A Call for Help
From there the pace of summer really picked up based on an unexpected need.
As parents we are very proud of our children’s independence. We love their willingness to work through issues, solve problems, and the self-reliance they show. However, we also know that when one of them calls, sounding broken, out of solutions, and not seeing a light at the end of the tunnel, it is not for a lack of trying. Receiving a call like this from our son, Trey, could only mean one thing, it was time to bring him home.
The Universe Aligns
In an amazing example of how the universe is always working in our favor, getting him back to Naked Acres was just part of the process! Some of his friends from California had been staying with us and all three of them had experience building out their vehicles. They were excited to help out in any way possible.
About the only thing that could make this more perfect is if we had friends, that had built out one of the nicest busses we have ever seen, and just happened to be fantastic at documenting and sharing stories on YouTube so that this story can live on after our memory fades.
Thankfully, Don and Mela aka Rehabit8 on YouTube had planned to come visit us for two weeks over the summer and just happened to coincide with Trey’s arrival. Their expertise both on the build and documenting it for us, goes beyond anything we could have ever paid them for.
Between the friends and all of our amazing family that gave love, support, snacks, and a whole lot of expertise in areas we were able to get him safely on the road, in just a few short weeks.
What started out as an emotional homecoming ended up being the healing moments lives are made of!
We are grateful for all of them beyond the words we can write or say! It is a true testament to the beauty of the human experience!
Here is the YouTube video showing the build out process and the character Trey is! Be sure to like, subscribe and follow Don and Mella @Rehabit8 on YouTube for some of the best traveling content out there.
Year 3 of Our Airstream Adventure
It was also the perfect send off for Andrea, Otis and I as we headed west to start year 3 by exploring Oregon! We cannot wait to share with you the adventures, misadventures, and experiences the upcoming travel year brings us!
Thank you all so much for being part of our tribe, we love you all!
See you down the road!